Pluggable connectors are widely used to interconnect electrical or electronic form the basis of computers, business machines, communication and scientific equipment and a host of other useful products. Typically, such connectors are formed of conductive material, frequently stamped and formed from sheet stock such as brass or phosphor bronze, and incorporated in some fashion into plastic housings typically molded of dielectric and insulating material. Most frequently, the conductive portions of the connectors are made to include spring sections operable to resiliently engage component leads and provide an interconnection therewith. The trend to high densities for electronic components is driven by the ability of integrated circuits to miniaturize circuit functions which, concomitantly, makes the traditional processes for forming connectors more difficult, both in the stamping, forming, and molding, as well as in the handling and maintenance of production tooling. Additionally, the limitations placed on the dimensions and geometry of the parts, including width and height, imposed by the historical processes, effectively restrain making connectors compatibly smaller for use with the ever smaller components they serve.
U.S. Pat. No. 2,958,064 teaches a circuit board and socket construction for pluggably receiving the leads of components. The invention thereindefined provides a socket through the use of a flexible layer of insulating material laminated to a rigid circuit board, the carrying fingers taught to be of a resilient metal such as phosphor bronze, resilient brass or the like, given a stiffness and resilience to firmly engage the component leads and establish a desirable electrical connection therewith. Apertures in the resilient layer have a smaller diameter than the corresponding diameter of a round component lead inserted therein in order to grip and center the lead for interconnection and support. This patent teaches embodiments wherein the circuit pattern is supported within a cavity in rigid and resilient materials and also wherein the conductive foil is made to extend in cantilevered fashion over the edges of the cavity; both to join a prong-like conductive lead inserted within the socket formed thereby.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,241,277 relates to a light emitting diode (LED) display panel having bus conductors on a flexible support. In this patent a thin conductive foil is laminated to a dielectric film with the foil being given a configuration at selected points to define tap conductors which are displaced transverse to the film by the insertion of a LED to make electrical contact with the electrodes of the LED sandwich. A grating is provided that surrounds individual LEDs and the tap conductors to support the film including the tap conductors. The interconnection of the LED may be covered with a potting compound such as epoxy in order to strengthen the assembly.
It is an object of the present invention to provide a planar interconnection for electrical or electronic component leads that represents an improvement over the inventions of the above-mentioned patents.
A further object is to provide a pluggable electrical interconnection that receives component leads through a laminar construction to form an interconnecting element that no longer need be a barrier to further miniaturization of component to board interconnection systems.
It is yet a further object to provide a pluggable contact that is compatible with use on, and attachable to, circuit boards both in terms of its configuration and in terms of process limitations on dimensions.
It is still a further object to provide a low-profile pluggable interconnection compatible with the configuration and dimensions of integrated circuits and like electronic packages.